Trevor Lawrence is back at full health for the first offseason in years, and the Jaguars are counting on it turning into wins.
Lawrence has been sharp through the early stages of head coach Liam Coen’s second offseason program in Jacksonville. Reports out of Duval say he has looked like a completely different quarterback compared to a year ago, when he was still fighting through shoulder recovery from the season-ending injury the year before.
The Jaguars need every bit of it. Jacksonville has been stuck in the mud since Lawrence’s breakout playoff run in 2022. Between injuries, coaching changes, roster issues and general dysfunction, the franchise has not been able to build on anything for more than a few weeks at a time.
Coen is trying to change that. His offense is built around timing, quick decisions and putting the quarterback in easy spots to succeed. That fits Lawrence perfectly if the two of them can get on the same page.
Last year was Coen’s first in Jacksonville, and it was messy. The offense had glimpses. Lawrence had moments. Nothing was consistent. The Jaguars limped to another losing season and everyone in Duval spent the offseason questioning whether Lawrence was ever going to be the star everyone thought he would be coming out of Clemson.
Reports from the offseason program have been much more positive. Lawrence has apparently mastered the checks and the tempo. His teammates say he is playing with more confidence. The receiving corps has been rebuilt around Brian Thomas Jr., who is one of the most exciting young wideouts in the league, and Travis Hunter, who is a legitimate two-way threat.
Travis Hunter is the wildcard. If he actually plays both sides of the ball as a rookie, the Jaguars have a scheme advantage nobody else in the league has. Coen is one of the more creative offensive minds in the NFL. Handing him a Swiss Army knife like Hunter is going to be fun to watch.
Lawrence’s contract situation is the elephant in the room. He signed a massive extension a couple of years ago. If he does not produce this year, the Jaguars are going to have serious questions to answer about whether they built the franchise around the right guy.
The AFC South is winnable. The Texans are the class of the division, but they are not unbeatable. The Colts have questions at quarterback. The Titans are rebuilding. There is a real path for the Jaguars to be in the wild-card mix if the offense clicks.
Lawrence’s health is the first domino. If he stays upright, the offense has a real chance. If he goes down again, Jacksonville is starting over.
Camp is going to tell the story. The Jaguars need Lawrence and Coen to prove that last year’s disappointments were about injury and adjustment, not about actual talent. This is Year 6 for Lawrence in the league. He is 26 years old. There are no more excuses left.
The good news is he is healthy. The scheme is his. The receiving corps is real. Now he just has to go do it.
Jaguars fans have heard this song before. This might be the year they actually get the payoff.
A longtime sports reporter, Carlos Garcia has written about some of the biggest and most notable athletic events of the last 5 years. He has been credentialed to cover MLS, NBA and MLB games all over the United States. His work has been published on Fox Sports, Bleacher Report, AOL and the Washington Post.
